Latest news with #TheGlobalNewLightofMyanmar
The Star
a day ago
- Politics
- The Star
Myanmar battles to replace poppy cultivation with cash crops
FILE PHOTO: This photo taken on February 26, 2024 shows displaced residents working in the illegal poppy fields for their livelihood during the fighting between Myanmar' military and Karenni Nationalities Defence Force at Moe Bye in Pekon Township, on the border of Karen State and southern Shan State. - AFP PHNOM PENH: The ongoing armed conflict is hindering Myanmar's efforts to eliminate poppy cultivation and combat drug trafficking, posing a threat to national security. The prevailing political instability, due to conflict between the military and armed militias, and rising economic hardships, are pushing farmers in remote mountainous regions to cultivate poppies. "Growing poppy and heroin production were a major issue for Myanmar in the past," said Home Affairs Minister Lt-Gen Tun Tun Naung, as reported in the state media, The Global New Light of Myanmar. Currently, the country has been facing challenges of synthetic drug production, trafficking and trading similar to other countries across the world. "On the other hand, the number of sown acres of poppies rises again in the areas controlled by ethnic armed groups,' said Tun Tun Naung. Myanmar is working to introduce alternative crops, such as coffee and tea, along with livestock projects, to replace poppy cultivation among farmers. During the 2024-25 poppy cultivation season, security forces destroyed nearly 1,900 hectares (4,734.5 acres) of poppy plantations. In conjunction with the 2025 International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on Thursday (June 26), Myanmar authorities destroyed 66 kinds of drugs and precursor chemicals, including heroin, opium, methamphetamine, cannabis and ketamine worth RM1.3 billion (US$297 million) in Yangon, Mandalay, Taunggyi and Sagaing, said the state media. In a lengthy article published in the state media on Thursday, the occasion of the global anti-drug campaign, Tun Tun Naung revealed the monumental task his government faces in eradicating the social scourge. The complex nexus of production and distribution of narcotics, supported by cross-border networks, makes it difficult to contain the illicit flow of drugs. "Although precursor chemicals and related accessories used in drug production cannot be produced in Myanmar, they can enter Myanmar easily and illegally through the border regions. "As the majority of produced drugs are trafficked to regional countries and highly demanded countries through border regions, Myanmar is facing challenges in conducting prevention and suppression against drug trafficking,' said Tun Tun Naung. On the same day, an advertorial in the state media highlighted the seriousness of the proliferation of narcotics and their impact on Myanmar's society. "Myanmar is grappling with serious challenges related to poppy cultivation, synthetic drug production and widespread drug abuse. But local authorities and law enforcement bodies are carrying out the eradication of narcotic drugs through collaborative efforts as much as possible,' said the editorial. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) 2023 opium survey in Myanmar revealed the grave problem of the opium economy, fuelled by conflict and rural poverty. According to UNODC, on average, farmers could easily earn RM1,184 (US$280) per kilogramme of opium in 2022, even as supply was abundant. "The attractiveness of opium as a crop and commodity, and strong expanding demand, as the Golden Triangle opium and heroin trade appears to be reconnecting to the global market. Farmers earned more than twice as much from opium as in the previous year (2022),' said the agency's report. - Bernama
Barnama
a day ago
- Politics
- Barnama
Myanmar Battles To Replace Poppy Cultivation With Cash Crops
Poppy cultivation is still prevalent in the mountainous region of Myanmar. (Photo credit: UNODC website.) caption: Farmers opt for poppy cultivation instead of other cash crops as they fetch lucrative prices. (Photo credit: UNODC website) By Vijian Paramasivam PHNOM PENH, June 27 (Bernama) -- The ongoing armed conflict is hindering Myanmar's efforts to eliminate poppy cultivation and combat drug trafficking, posing a threat to national security. The prevailing political instability, due to conflict between the military and armed militias, and rising economic hardships, are pushing farmers in remote mountainous regions to cultivate poppies. bootstrap slideshow 'Growing poppy and heroin production were a major issue for Myanmar in the past. Currently, the country has been facing challenges of synthetic drug production, trafficking and trading similar to other countries across the world. 'On the other hand, the number of sown acres of poppies rises again in the areas controlled by ethnic armed groups,' said Home Affairs Minister Lt-Gen Tun Tun Naung, reported the state media, The Global New Light of Myanmar. Myanmar is working to introduce alternative crops, such as coffee and tea, along with livestock projects, to replace poppy cultivation among farmers. During the 2024-25 poppy cultivation season, security forces destroyed nearly 1,900 hectares (4,734.5 acres) of poppy plantations. In conjunction with the 2025 International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on Thursday, Myanmar authorities destroyed 66 kinds of drugs and precursor chemicals, including heroin, opium, methamphetamine, cannabis and ketamine worth RM1.3 billion (US$297 million) in Yangon, Mandalay, Taunggyi and Sagaing, said the state media. In a lengthy article published in the state media on Thursday, the occasion of the global anti-drug campaign, Tun Tun Naung revealed the monumental task his government faces in eradicating the social scourge.
Arab Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Arab Times
Myanmar set to hold election by January 2026
NAY PYI TAW, June 26, (Xinhua): Myanmar's State Administration Council Chairman Senior General Min Aung Hlaing said that the election will be held during December this year and January next year, state-owned daily The Global New Light of Myanmar reported on Thursday. Min Aung Hlaing confirmed the election plan during the Peace Forum 2025 in Nay Pyi Taw on Wednesday. At the forum, Min Aung Hlaing said the government will create opportunities for all eligible voters to cast their votes. Preparations are being made to hold a free and fair election, the report added. The Senior General emphasized that ethnic rights and political demands that require amendments to the Constitution will be addressed within the framework of the Constitution, it said. He also called on individuals to serve the interest of the State as best as possible with the aspiration for peace, it added.
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Myanmar junta chief confirms year-end election plan
Senior General Min Aung Hlaing pledged that the election will be held in December 2025 and January 2026. PHOTO: AFP YANGON - Myanmar's junta chief said the country plans to hold elections in December and January, state media reported on June 26, pressing ahead with polls denounced as a sham by international monitors. The military deposed Myanmar's civilian government in a 2021 coup which sparked a many-sided civil war, but has promoted its election plans as a pathway to peace. With members of the former government locked away, opposition groups set to boycott the vote and huge tracts of the country controlled by anti-junta rebels, observers say a fair poll is impossible. State newspaper The Global New Light of Myanmar said junta chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, speaking at a conference in the capital Naypyidaw on June 25, 'pledged that the election will be held in December this year and January next year'. It is not clear whether the junta plans to hold the election in phases – a potential sign it would struggle to guarantee security on a single nationwide polling day – or whether the timetable includes a campaign period. On June 25, the United Nations' special rapporteur on the rights' situation in Myanmar, Mr Tom Andrews, said the junta is 'trying to create this mirage of an election exercise that will create a legitimate civilian government'. 'You cannot have an election when you imprison and torture and execute your opponents, when it is illegal to report the truth as a journalist, when it's illegal to speak out and criticise the junta,' he told reporters in Geneva. Junta forces have suffered stinging territorial losses to pro-democracy guerrillas and powerful ethnic armed organisations in recent months. Military backing from China and Russia is letting it stave off defeat, analysts say, but huge areas of the country are set to be beyond the reach of any junta-organised democratic exercise. A junta census held in 2024 to prepare for the poll admitted it could not collect data from an estimated 19 million of the country's 51 million people, in part because of 'significant security constraints'. 'We are currently making the necessary preparations to hold the elections as widely and extensively as possible,' Senior Gen Min Aung Hlaing said, according to a transcript of his conference speech in The Global New Light of Myanmar. 'Most importantly, the elections must be free and fair,' he said. AFP Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Star
09-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
Myanmar aims to export over 350,000 tonnes of rubber in FY 2025-26
YANGON: Myanmar aims to export 350,000 to 380,000 tonnes of rubber in the 2025-2026 fiscal year (April 2025-March 2026), an official from the Myanmar Rubber Planters and Producers Association told Xinhua on Sunday (June 8). In the 2024-2025 fiscal year, Myanmar exported about 300,000 tonnes of rubber, earning nearly US$500 million, according to the state-owned daily The Global New Light of Myanmar. Exports to China account for 75 per cent of Myanmar's total rubber exports, with the rest going to Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, India and Japan, the report said. Rubber is grown on 0.56 million ha across the country. Mon State is the main producer of rubber, followed by Tanintharyi region and Kayin state, it added. - Bernama/Xinhua
